We have had an amazing week - I don't know where to start - there has been so much going on and so much to share.
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| Apple Torte |
We have decided to invite each one of the missionary companionships to dinner on Sundays. We hope to have each set once each 6 week transfer. Sunday we had Sisters Hepworth and Spratt. It was Sister Spratt's birthday and so I made her an Apple Torte for her Birthday cake. It was really nice having them in our home and getting to know them better. We have invited a new Elder from England and his companion from Germany for this Sunday. I think he needs a little TLC and a good meal.
Monday we had about 20 for Family Home Evening. We watched the Face to Face broadcast from Sunday evening in Utah with Elder Soares and Elder Christensen. The them for the Broadcast was: Living The Gospel Brings Me Hope Because . . . . They asked everyone attending to ponder that question before coming to the Devotional. They answered questions from YSA around the world. It was a really good broadcast. We went from 1 last week to 20 this week. We made lots of waffles, sausage and buttermilk syrup. It is really nice having so many attend.
Tuesday we had interview with Pres. Brown, our Mission President. It is always a special day when he comes and visits with the District. On Monday morning, Pres. Russell M. Nelson, our Prophet spoke at a BYU Devotional to all of the students. We listened to the broadcast for our District Council as we waited for our interviews. He spoke on 5 Truths:
1. You are sons and daughters of God
2. Truth is Truth
3. God loves every one of us with perfect love.
4. The Lord Jesus Christ, whose Church this is, appoints Prophets and Apostles to communicate His love and His laws.
5. You may know for yourself what is true and what is not be learning to discern the whisperings of the Spirit.
I am so grateful we have a Prophet on the earth today to guide and direct us in the ways of Jesus Christ. We then had the opportunity to attend a special meeting in the evening for all Ward and Stake Leaders with Elder Kopsichke from the European Area Presidency and Elder Wondra an Area Authority Seventy. They are from Germany and Austria and were very empowering to those in attendance. This was just the beginning of what was in store for us in the next few days.
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| white chocolate chunks |
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| Pumpkin Snicker Doodles |
A group of missionaries asked me if I had some pumpkin recipes and if they could have a pumpkin carving contest and make some good pumpkin foods for a P-Day in October. I told them I had some really good recipes for pumpkin. I had just found the recipe for Pumpkin Snicker Doodles and I want to try them, so I made them for District Council to try them out. They were a huge success. You cannot get white chocolate chips (or any chocolate chips here) so I chopped up a white chocolate candy bar and made my own chips.
PUMPKIN WHITE CHOCOLATE CHIP SNICKERDOODLES
1 3/4 cup Flour 1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. Allspice 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. nutmeg 1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup pumpkin puree 1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla 2/3 c. white choc. chips
COATING: 1/3 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
Whisk flour, cinnamon, baking powder, soda, allspice, cloves, nutmeg and salt. Stir in the white chocolate chips.
In another bowl, stir together the pumpkin, sugars, melted butter and vanilla.
Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients all at once and stir just until combined.
Cover and refrigerate for 30 min.
Preheat oven to 375*. Combine Coating mix. Scoop dough into balls about 1 1/2 Tbls. each. Roll in sugar mixture. Place on pan and press lightly to flatten. Bake 8-10 min. Cool on rack.
We got up early Wednesday morning and started our drive to Munich. It
was a nice day and we decided to stop at The Eagle's Nest in
Berchtesgaden Germany, just outside of Salzburg, Austria.
It is only open from May-October because of weather conditions and the road being able to be open. Only buses are allowed on the road. We thought it was a nice weather day but as we climbed higher on the mountain in the bus the weather changed.
We went through several tunnels and a winding road to arrive at the main tunnel that then takes you on an elevator to the top of the mountain.
At an elevation of 1,834 m (6,017 ft.), the Eagle's Nest or Kehlsteinhaus, as it is call in German, was a prestigious teahouse for Adolf Hitler's use. Several thousand workers were employed in the construction, involving extreme working conditions. Despite the treacherous terrain and significant logistical complexity, the project had to be completed in record time. The building cost 30 million reichsmarks and testifies to the regime's delusions of grandeur. The workers completed the building project in less than two years, in the summer of 1938.
To visit it today, a 6.5 km road, built solely to reach the Eagle's Nest, leads to a cliff-side turn-around point. From there, a 124-m-long tunnel, cut through the rock, gives access to a brass-paneled elevator. Rising another 124 vertical meters, the lift was originally intended to transport Hitler comfortably into his mountaintop teahouse. He actually spent very little time here. Almost everything was destroyed after the War to try to wipe away the terror of the regime. It is a reminder of the effects of the one-time unconditional "faith in the Fuhrer" fashioned in stone. Since 1945
it has symbolized the "wondrous sham of the Third Reich" like no other construction relict from the National Socialist era.
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| inside entrance tunnel |
It is very solemn walking through the tunnel and visualizing the workers who did the work. It is hard to imagine all that went on during this time at this place.
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| Entrance to tunnel |
The entrance is on the side of the mountain peak with the Eagle's Nest directly above it. It was quite a ride on the elevator. They did not allow photos inside of the elevator. To the right is the room you enter to enter the elevator. I got a picture just as the door was opening but mostly you could just see people.
Currently there are two restaurants inside the building. You just walk around and can climb to the top of the peak. We hiked up, but the clouds were so thick you could not really see anything, including the building.
The current exhibition room was used earlier by the Nazi leaders as a sun terrace. There was an interesting feeling as we walked the halls and rooms of the building. It is not a memory that really wants to be remembered. The proceeds from the tourist fees are used for charitable purposes.
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| Kehlsteinhaus 1834 meters |
It was a beautiful drive and we enjoyed the time spent there. It was an experience to remember.
We arrived in Munich just in time to go to dinner with several other Senior Missionaries. We went to the same restaurant we ate at the day we arrived in Germany 14 months ago. We also stayed at the same Holiday Inn that we stayed at when we arrived. It was a fun evening of good food and visiting.
Thursday was our Mission Conference.
Always fun to have a group photo. They were trying to get us all in place for a good photo. We were able to get all of the missionaries that we served with in the Freiburg District that were attending to have a group picture. We love these Elders and Sisters so much. It is always a great day when we get to see them again and share stories. These are valiant young men and women who have chosen to serve Jesus Christ at this time of their lives. They teach us so much and we are so grateful to be able to serve with them. So nice to have 5 of them in the Austrian Zone.
I wish I could share what we learned in the conference, but this is already a long post and I will save you the reading. In all of the talks this past week, one of the over riding themes was the need to seek truth and ask questions. Joseph Smith was a boy of many questions. His questions are answered in the 130 Sections of the Doctrine and Covenants. If we go to a meeting or a class with no questions, there will be no learning. If you don't have questions, you stop learning. Go to Church to get answers to your questions.
Thursday was one of the highlights of our whole mission. It was a powerful meeting that empowered us to continue serving with a greater purpose and with the knowledge that we are doing The Lord's work. We had a wonderful lunch and then more instruction. The young missionaries had trains to catch to return to their homes - quite a feat to get 80 missionaries on a bus to the train station and everyone to their trains on time. We then had a special meeting with Elder Kopischke and his wife and all of the Senior Missionaries. Wow! what an amazing hour and a half of questions and answers. It was delightful and insightful. We then had dinner and we were fortunate to sit with the Kopischke's and were able to learn more about them and learn from them as well. It was a truly spirit filled day and one that we will always remember.
We spent Friday morning at the BMW museum and showroom. It was fun to learn of the history of BMW and all that they actually manufacture from motorcycles to airplane engines. They have a beautiful complex with 4 large buildings that house the assembly plant, Corporate headquarters, museum and show room. You can rent a BMW for the day as well as purchase a car off the line, drive it to tour the country and then return it to the showroom and they will ship it to the USA for you. There is an area you can watch people picking up their cars. It is quite a show.
They market the BMW, Mini Cooper and Rolls Royce. The Rolls Royce on display was $370,000.
It was fun to dream for a day.
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| Looking smart |
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| Ready for the Road |
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| Mini Coopers |
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| Vintage original models |
These are clay models in 1:1 scale. It was very interesting to see the design process and all that goes into developing new models.
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| Motorcycle clay model |
These are some of the newer model cars. I did not take pictures of the new concept cars, but they were beautiful.
We then tackled the long drive home. It should only be a 5 hr. drive home, but Munich traffic is terrible and Friday was the start of Oktoberfest so there was a lot of traffic. We were in bumper to bumper traffic all the way to Salzburg. We stopped for gas and then there was an accident and a thirty minute delay. It took us 7 hours to get home and we were so glad to arrive home safe.
We ended the week shopping for next weeks needs and trying a new restaurant. We had a first - we rode the street car to get dinner and we were the only ones on the whole streetcar. We were so surprised for a Saturday afternoon. We went to a really fun place that specialized in Austrian home cooking and especially desserts. It was a very fun place and a very happening place.
The food was very earthy and very good. It was an experience. The desserts are famous and look really good. I have to admit, I still am not used to the lack of flavor and sweetness in their desserts. We had kasekuchen (cheesecake) and an apple kuchen. We can say we have been there and it was a great eating experience.
Fall is in the air and we are having beautiful 60-70 degree days. It will be good if it stays this way for a little while. We understand Winters are very cold and windy.
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| vegetable soup with rye bread |
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| brots in broth with a pretzel |
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Saturday
Lunch!
We have had a memorable week. We are so grateful to be in Vienna and to have the new experiences we are having. We do not know what the future will bring, but we look forward to continuing serving and doing whatever we are asked to do. More Senior Missionaries are needed. For those of you who are retired, think about it - it will change your life!
Viel Liebe,
The Grimmett's
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